Overcoming the Impossible

Our Theme for 2024 is Possessing the Land.

We are currently in a study of the book of Joshua called “Lessons in Courage.

So far we have talked about obedience and disobedience.

Last week we talked about covenant and how trust and loyalty in relationship is so important to God.

So Joshua and the Israelites have conquered Jericho - the gateway city.

Then they took out Ai and Bethel in the central hill country.

Gibeon, which is just to the south of Ai and Bethel makes a covenant with them.

That gives Joshua and Israel, who are still camped out at Gilgal, along the Jordan river, control over the central highlands.

They have incredible momentum as they now focus on the north half of the territory.

Have you ever been in a situation where things where going good and then “all hell breaks loose?”

May 22, 2016 at Hopewell Christian Fellowship in Telford we had a weekend of celebration as we dedicated the new facility. I was asked to give the Sunday morning message which I entitled “a place of His Presence.” It was a “Joshua” kind of message, casting vision for the future. I had just published my book on baptism and had also taken an assignment to provide pastoral care for the Thailand team. I have never felt such momentum in ministry … and then it started.

By the end of the following day, my wife at the time, Heidi (some of you knew her) had a cancer diagnosis which would turn the next fourteen months into a battle for her life. A battle which we eventually lost.

How is this an illustration of overcoming?

It’s an illustration of overcoming because I am still standing here today.

It is an illustration of overcoming because God brought Karie into my life and we are still doing ministry together.

Not only are we a good team, but I have been through a season of overwhelming grief in my own life.

And as a result, I now have the ability to understand and relate to people who are going through grief.

Joshua and the Israelites are at a stage in their conquest where just about everything that the enemy has left is going to be unleashed against them all at once.

Victory is going to look and feel impossible.

And it is impossible without God.

This is when you need to realize it is not about you.

You can not depend on your own power to overcome.

What you can do is to align yourself with the plan an purpose of God.

Because His plan and purpose will ultimately prevail and He will use you to do it.

So lets back up and take those points one at a time.

It is God who helps you overcome.

This may seem like stating the obvious - but if it were so obvious we would not need to struggle as much as we do.

Psalm 68:19 NLT

19 Praise the Lord; praise God our savior! For each day he carries us in his arms. Interlude

The first lesson in courage when it comes to overcoming is admitting that you can’t do it on your own.

Its the first step in the “twelve steps to recovery.”

“We admitted we were powerless over our addiction - that our lives had become unmanageable.”

The first step to getting help is admitting that you can’t do it on your own.

And when you do, you are ready for our first point.

God will help you, when you do your part.

Joshua 10:6–11 ESV

6 And the men of Gibeon sent to Joshua at the camp in Gilgal, saying, “Do not relax your hand from your servants. Come up to us quickly and save us and help us, for all the kings of the Amorites who dwell in the hill country are gathered against us.” 7 So Joshua went up from Gilgal, he and all the people of war with him, and all the mighty men of valor. 8 And the Lord said to Joshua, “Do not fear them, for I have given them into your hands. Not a man of them shall stand before you.” 9 So Joshua came upon them suddenly, having marched up all night from Gilgal. 10 And the Lord threw them into a panic before Israel, who struck them with a great blow at Gibeon and chased them by the way of the ascent of Beth-horon and struck them as far as Azekah and Makkedah. 11 And as they fled before Israel, while they were going down the ascent of Beth-horon, the Lord threw down large stones from heaven on them as far as Azekah, and they died. There were more who died because of the hailstones than the sons of Israel killed with the sword.

Remember the Gibeonites who made a covenant with Joshua by lying and saying that they were from a far country when they were just over the hill?

Well now the five kings who were allied to attack Joshua are attacking them.

We talked last week about how, even though making a covenant with them was wrong for so many reasons, they had to honor that covenant and not kill them.

But his is a new test, they won’t kill them but will they defend them?

The enemy was counting on Joshua and the Israelites dragging their feet to get there.

Joshua surprised them by hiking all night, uphill, in the dark.

We have talked in previous lessons about how God wants to partner with us.

When you do your part, God does His part.

And the part that God does is usually bigger than your part.

But God wants you to do your part because he values your relationship and your participation.

God can fight our battle for us, but He wants our participation.

2 Chronicles 16:9 ESV

9 For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him. You have done foolishly in this, for from now on you will have wars.”

Joshua participates by showing up - early - against all odds.

And the enemy panics and runs.

Now God does something totally unexpected and sends a hailstorm.

Not like little hail pebbles, but giant rock-sized hail that takes out the enemy as they are running away.

The narrator notes that more people were killed by the hail than by Joshua’s army.

This is an example of God literally fighting for His people.

But Joshua and Israel first demonstrated their whole-hearted commitment to the covenant that they made with the Gibeonites.

God hears us and responds.

Joshua 10:12–14 ESV

12 At that time Joshua spoke to the Lord in the day when the Lord gave the Amorites over to the sons of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel, “Sun, stand still at Gibeon, and moon, in the Valley of Aijalon.” 13 And the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, until the nation took vengeance on their enemies. Is this not written in the Book of Jashar? The sun stopped in the midst of heaven and did not hurry to set for about a whole day. 14 There has been no day like it before or since, when the Lord heeded the voice of a man, for the Lord fought for Israel.

So Joshua and the Israelites are pursuing the armies of the five kings down the mountains and across a wide plain of the Valley of Aijalon.

From the higher ground, Israel’s army has the visibility to see the fleeing armies in the distance.

The only problem is that the sun is going down.

Even though they are gaining on them, they will soon be able to hide under the cover of darkness.

So Joshua is heard praying, declaring, telling the sun to stand still.

If the sun does not go down, they can overtake the fleeing armies.

And guess what? The sun did not go down for what would have been a whole day!

Joshua was able to finish taking out the armies that survived the hailstorm.

The narrator of the book of Joshua makes an interesting note here.

Joshua 10:14 Tanakh

14 for the Lord fought for Israel. Neither before nor since has there ever been such a day, when the Lord acted on words spoken by a man.

We often take it for granted that God hears and answers our prayers.

But this was no ordinary prayer - asking God to suspend the laws of nature.

And Joshua wasn't merely asking, he was declaring it before it happened.

How Pentecostal of Joshua to do so!

It’s clear from the scriptures that we need to hear God’s voice and obey Him.

But what does it say about God, that He would also hear us and respond?

It says that God is willing to do what he asks us to do.

It say that God, not only wants our participation, but He participates with us.

It says that, while we are not equals, God relates to us in a way that is like a two-way relationship.

Jesus would say this even more directly.

John 16:23–24 NLT

23 At that time you won’t need to ask me for anything. I tell you the truth, you will ask the Father directly, and he will grant your request because you use my name. 24 You haven’t done this before. Ask, using my name, and you will receive, and you will have abundant joy.

You could say that Joshua was way ahead of his time.

The whole story is a foreshadowing of what is means to do the impossible by faith in Jesus’name.

Your enemies will trap themselves.

Joshua 10:16–21 ESV

16 These five kings fled and hid themselves in the cave at Makkedah. 17 And it was told to Joshua, “The five kings have been found, hidden in the cave at Makkedah.” 18 And Joshua said, “Roll large stones against the mouth of the cave and set men by it to guard them, 19 but do not stay there yourselves. Pursue your enemies; attack their rear guard. Do not let them enter their cities, for the Lord your God has given them into your hand.” 20 When Joshua and the sons of Israel had finished striking them with a great blow until they were wiped out, and when the remnant that remained of them had entered into the fortified cities, 21 then all the people returned safe to Joshua in the camp at Makkedah. Not a man moved his tongue against any of the people of Israel.

God knew that His people would always have enemies in this world.

Jesus told us that, as His followers, we would encounter opposition.

John 15:18–19 NLT

18 “If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first. 19 The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you.

Reading about Joshua’s conquest of the promised land is, in many ways, a parallel to the spiritual battles that we encounter every day.

The battle is much bigger than you or me - it is a spiritual battle with cosmic origins.

And it not just with people, but the spiritual forces that drive people to do what they do.

The important thing to remember is that you are not alone.

God is fighting these battles with you and for you.

You just need to stay close to him.

Look what happens to the enemy in this story - the five kings that set out to destroy Joshua are hiding in a cave.

Joshua rolls large stones across the mouth of the cave trapping them inside until he is finished fighting.

Do you think there is a lesson in this story for us?

We can spend a lot of time and energy worrying about what the enemy is doing.

There are those hyper-vigilant Christians who are always watching out for the enemy.

I think God would say to us, “I’ve got the enemy right where I want him.’

The devil seems to always overplay his hand.

Don’t worry - God’s got this - watch the enemy trap himself again.

Overcoming does not depend on your power.

Joshua 11:1–5 ESV

1 When Jabin, king of Hazor, heard of this, he sent to Jobab king of Madon, and to the king of Shimron, and to the king of Achshaph, 2 and to the kings who were in the northern hill country, and in the Arabah south of Chinneroth, and in the lowland, and in Naphoth-dor on the west, 3 to the Canaanites in the east and the west, the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, and the Jebusites in the hill country, and the Hivites under Hermon in the land of Mizpah. 4 And they came out with all their troops, a great horde, in number like the sand that is on the seashore, with very many horses and chariots. 5 And all these kings joined their forces and came and encamped together at the waters of Merom to fight against Israel.

This time Joshua and the armies of Israel are marching north.

They make a left at the sea of Galilee and follow the river up into the hills.

When they reach the highest point - Merom means High place- they look out and see a horde gathered.

A horde usually refers to an army so great in number that you can’t see the end of it - and that’s exactly what it means here.

I think about the battle scenes in The Lord of the Rings. The armies are so vast in number that they darken the landscape and they keep coming like waves on the sea.

A situation like that seems hopeless.

It is literally overwhelming - because you can’t even begin to plan a comprehensive strategy.

Your strategy is to simply survive.

Fight as hard as you can.

Live as long as you can.

Hope that at least some of you survive.

A word from the Lord gives courage.

Joshua 11:6–9 ESV

6 And the Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid of them, for tomorrow at this time I will give over all of them, slain, to Israel. You shall hamstring their horses and burn their chariots with fire.” 7 So Joshua and all his warriors came suddenly against them by the waters of Merom and fell upon them. 8 And the Lord gave them into the hand of Israel, who struck them and chased them as far as Great Sidon and Misrephoth-maim, and eastward as far as the Valley of Mizpeh. And they struck them until he left none remaining. 9 And Joshua did to them just as the Lord said to him: he hamstrung their horses and burned their chariots with fire.

What if you could see what God sees?

What if you could see what is possible? Would that give you courage.

God gives Joshua a vision of how this battle looks from His perspective.

Those horses can be crippled by a well-placed blade or arrow.

Those chariots are made of wood - a flaming arrow will set them on fire.

There may be hordes out there, but if you choose the location - say a narrow valley - they will still have to fight you one at a time.

Don’t be afraid of them -face your fear.

The Hebrew speaks of not being afraid of your enemy’s face -

literally facing your fears instead of turning your face.

Fear will cripple you and cause you to give up hope.

A word from the Lord will open up new possibilities.

But you need to be calm enough to see them.

God removes and establishes leaders.

Joshua 11:10–15 ESV

10 And Joshua turned back at that time and captured Hazor and struck its king with the sword, for Hazor formerly was the head of all those kingdoms. 11 And they struck with the sword all who were in it, devoting them to destruction; there was none left that breathed. And he burned Hazor with fire. 12 And all the cities of those kings, and all their kings, Joshua captured, and struck them with the edge of the sword, devoting them to destruction, just as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded. 13 But none of the cities that stood on mounds did Israel burn, except Hazor alone; that Joshua burned. 14 And all the spoil of these cities and the livestock, the people of Israel took for their plunder. But every person they struck with the edge of the sword until they had destroyed them, and they did not leave any who breathed. 15 Just as the Lord had commanded Moses his servant, so Moses commanded Joshua, and so Joshua did. He left nothing undone of all that the Lord had commanded Moses.

So with the hordes on the run, Joshua doubles back to, “cut the head off the snake.”

Jabin is the leader of the northern armies and he ruled from Hazor.

Joshua takes out Hazor and burns the city to the ground.

Hazor is one of only three cities (Ai, Jericho) that Joshua burned down.

Most of the cities of Caanan were simply taken over and “repurposed.”

Burning down a city is meant to send a signal - a smoke signal.

It’s a great way to advertise your victory - let everyone know that there is a new sheriff in town.

The Bible says that God raises up and takes down leaders.

Romans 13:1–2 ESV

1 Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. 2 Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment.

Does that mean that all leaders are good or godly? - certainly not!

Remember, when Paul wrote this, Nero was the Emperor of Rome.

So why even say such a thing?

It is to remind us when we feel powerless, that even the Emperor has to answer to someone.

Nero didn’t last.

F. F. Bruce wrote a commentary on the letters of Paul which he dedicated to his grand-daughters and grand-sons - one of whom was named Paul. And then he inserted this comment: bearing in mind T.R. Glover’s comment on a Roman Emperor’s condemnation of the Apostle to the Gentiles – – that the day was to come when men would call their dogs Nero and their sons PAUL.

Being subject to authorities is also to recognize that leaders themselves are subject to a higher authority.

We may wonder how they got there, and why God let them stay there as long as he did, but history is not very kind to despotic leaders.

Jabin and his hordes could not defeat God’s leader - Joshua.

And to remind us of this, the narrator mentions Moses’ name several times.

Jabin comes from a royal line of kings.

Joshua is also part of a line of great leaders, beginning with Moses.

It doesn’t matter who you are or where you came from, God is looking to promote leaders who align themselves with him.

God shows us the condition of our hearts.

Joshua 11:18–20 ESV

18 Joshua made war a long time with all those kings. 19 There was not a city that made peace with the people of Israel except the Hivites, the inhabitants of Gibeon. They took them all in battle. 20 For it was the Lord’s doing to harden their hearts that they should come against Israel in battle, in order that they should be devoted to destruction and should receive no mercy but be destroyed, just as the Lord commanded Moses.

Here the narrator lets us know that even though the battle was won in a relatively short period of time, it took a much longer time to bring everything under control.

Not everyone in the area is excited about Joshua as their new leader.

Only the Gibeonites offered servitude - everyone else would rather die.

The Bible lets us know that while there was a lot of blood shed in the conquest of the promised land, there was a choice involved too.

When the Bible says that “God hardens hearts”, I think a better way of saying that is that “God showed a hard heart to be what is really is.”

We usually don’t think our hearts are hard -

we want to believe we are all nice people -

even dictators make people call them “papa” and “uncle.”

But when circumstances arise that show us how “not in control” we really are - our heart hardens in response to the loss of control.

We find ourselves reacting in ways that are, quite frankly, out of control.

We have a choice at that moment.

We can confess and repent of what is in our heart.

Or we can double down and deny it.

We can either surrender or harden our hearts.

it seems that while the Gibeonites (liars that they are) surrendered, everyone else hardened their hearts.

And the implication is that their destruction was deserved.

It was based on the condition of their own hearts.

Overcoming is accomplishing God’s plan and purpose.

It was God’s plan to remove the giants from the land.

Joshua 11:21–23 ESV

21 And Joshua came at that time and cut off the Anakim from the hill country, from Hebron, from Debir, from Anab, and from all the hill country of Judah, and from all the hill country of Israel. Joshua devoted them to destruction with their cities. 22 There was none of the Anakim left in the land of the people of Israel. Only in Gaza, in Gath, and in Ashdod did some remain. 23 So Joshua took the whole land, according to all that the Lord had spoken to Moses. And Joshua gave it for an inheritance to Israel according to their tribal allotments. And the land had rest from war.

Joshua gets a lot of criticism from people today who say that the Bible is advocating genocide.

We like to impose our modern view of human rights onto the Biblical account.

But then we go to the movies and watch whole cities get wiped out by aliens from outer space.

It seems that any amount of violence is warranted when it comes to the survival of the human race.

But what if there was an existential threat to the human race in Joshua’s time?

The Anakim are a race of giants, as were the Rephaim that were mentioned in Deuteronomy.

Og of Bashan was thirteen feet tall.

The Anakim and the Rephaim were descendants of the Nephalim who existed before the flood.

Genesis 6:4 CEV

4 The children of the supernatural beings who had married these women became famous heroes and warriors. They were called Nephilim and lived on the earth at that time and even later.

That is another subject as to how they were around even after the flood - not as big, but there were still giants.

They were also the descendants of fallen angels - so alien DNA.

Now do you understand why it was so important to wipe them out?

God is not an egotistical maniac.

He is not ridding the land of people groups simply because he doesn’t like them - or because they don’t like Him.

There is a cosmic spiritual war and the earth hangs in the balance.

Some of the enemies that Joshua is up against are literal monsters.

But cleansing the land was only half of it.

It was God’s promise to give the land to His people.

Joshua 12:6 ESV

6 Moses, the servant of the Lord, and the people of Israel defeated them. And Moses the servant of the Lord gave their land for a possession to the Reubenites and the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh.

God’s plan was and is to redeem and to restore the earth.

In order to do that, He had to begin somewhere.

He began with the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

He set aside a people for himself and he located them in a land which was at the crossroad of civilization.

It began with Moses taking out some of the baddest tribes on the East side of the Jordan - like Og of Bashan.

And because it was rocky hill country with lots of vegetation, he gave it to the tribes who had lots of livestock.

It’s not great for farming, but it works for grazing.

Even today, some people say “what is so special about Israel?”

Israel is a starting point.

In some ways it is symbolic - but it represents what God wants to do in the earth.

God wants a people who will steward the earth while aligned with Him.

If you have ever been to Israel, you will see that (for the most part) they have taken this objective very seriously.

They are turning what was once a desert wasteland into productive farmland.

They are leading the world in technology and science.

But they are still faced with a lot of hostility.

Israel as a promised land points to another promised land - the Kingdom of God.

It is God’s purpose to establish His kingdom on earth.

Joshua 12:7–8 ESV

7 And these are the kings of the land whom Joshua and the people of Israel defeated on the west side of the Jordan, from Baal-gad in the Valley of Lebanon to Mount Halak, that rises toward Seir (and Joshua gave their land to the tribes of Israel as a possession according to their allotments, 8 in the hill country, in the lowland, in the Arabah, in the slopes, in the wilderness, and in the Negeb, the land of the Hittites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites):

Here the book of Joshua defines the approximate area of the land that was conquered by Joshua on the west side of the Jordan.

But the promised land is also a metaphor.

There is also a spiritual “land” to be conquered.

Jesus, who coincidentally has the same name as Joshua, is conquering the enemies of God, like sin and death.

1 Corinthians 15:24–26 NLT

24 After that the end will come, when he will turn the Kingdom over to God the Father, having destroyed every ruler and authority and power. 25 For Christ must reign until he humbles all his enemies beneath his feet. 26 And the last enemy to be destroyed is death.

The tribes that Joshua was fighting against were not just fighting against Joshua - they were in rebellion against God.

They were worshipping deities that were involved in a cosmic rebellion and had established their foothold on the earth.

That battle is still playing out today with seemingly powerful people who are trying to manipulate markets and control governments.

We are not just talking bout rich and well-connected people.

There is a supernatural agenda behind all of that.

The people of God (believers in Jesus Christ) are supposed to be the answer to all of that.

We are the Joshua generation.

What we are up against is HUGE, much bigger than any of us realize.

This is not going to be difficult - it is going to be impossible!

But then again - this is not about us or what we can do - this is about what a people aligned with God can do by the power of His Spirit.

Questions for reflection:

Do you ever feel small, weak or insignificant? Does the world seem threatening, intimidating or even overwhelming? What if you chose to see yourself as “in Christ?” Now how does it look to you?

If your life is God’s promised land, what is your response to God’s rule over your life? Are you surrendered? Or is your heart only getting hardened? If it all seems overwhelming, how about taking one step at a time?

Where is God asking you to show initiative? What are the battles that you face? What is your promised land? If you do your part, expect that God will do His. What is one step that you can take in faith today?